Happy New Year !
My Goodness is it just me or does it seem as I grow older that the years just seem to pass more quickly ?
2014 already. It seems like yesterday when we were turning the year 2000 "the Millenium" .. and everyone was scampering to save the world. Computer Crashes worldwide were going to happen and all sorts of other frightening things. Here we are 14 years later ... and another year older and hopefully wiser.
I hope you all had a fun New Year Celebration ..that is if you celebrate .. I'm not one of those that does .. My idea of celebrating is just a good old black and white movie a good dinner and to hope for a good nights rest. I know not to exciting by any means but it's just my speed ..LOL !
I also hope you all had a Super Duper Merriest Christmas !
We decided to change things up this year.
Usually Christmas is just myself and my parents here at home with a traditional home cooked meal, which is truly a favorite of mine. I am without a doubt a complete homebody so celebrating right here at home is the perfect Christmas ..but this year we decided to step out of our box and get away for a Christmas Vacation which I must say was very much needed !
After working 12 and 14 hour days for the last 10 days leading up to Christmas ..Abbey and I were exhausted and just about burned out. But we made it through .. The Lord gave us the strength, energy and will power to make it through.
Working from home however means that your work is always pretty much in your face. And it gets so hard to just walk away from it even when you are on your down time. There is always something that needs doing or can be done and for me it's hard to not do it. So getting away where I couldn't work at all was a really wonderful idea.
We decided we would head out on the Saturday Morning before Christmas for one of our Favorite Destinations .. Cambria, CA. It's a small town that sits on the CA coastline. Not touched by chain stores or chain restaurants. They have done an amazing job keeping it a small town filled with shops and restaurants owned by small business owners. They even keep a limit on housing which really makes for a beautiful place to visit. You truly feel like you can get away here from all the hustle, bustle, and craziness of the everyday world so many of us live in.
So off we went ...arriving to find our beautiful destination.. just as lovely and untouched as it was 5 years ago when we last visited.
The Motel we love to stay at is "Cambria Shores Inn" .. it sits on an ocean front road that runs about a mile I believe and is filled with many more motels all of which have ocean front views.
The above photo is of the knoll that sits out front of Cambria Shores .. filled with aqua Adirondack Chairs. These very Chairs are where you would find the 4 of us ..just about everyday we were there. Lazing in the Chairs ..listening to the roar of the Ocean .and watching the surfers, paddleboarders and other vacationers walk the wooden boardwalk along the ocean.
This is a birdseye view of the motel... a sweet single story place most likely built back in the 50's which has been renovated beautifully with all the modern conveniences you could want...
Most of the Rooms have ocean Views .. Ours did .. and every morning we rolled up the blinds and opened the window and had our breakfast in bed...
Cambria Shores Inn ..has so many special touches but their breakfast in a picnic basket brought to your room every morning a 8 a.m. and hung from a cast iron hook outside your door is positively wonderful. Fresh Fruit, Orange Juice, Bagels, and Muffins along with real silverware and cloth napkins is just the perfect touch .
The big Plus about Cambria Shores Inn for us is that they are "Dog Friendly"...Yes any size dog as long as it's friendly is welcome. In fact upon arrival you will find a special basket addressed to your dog. With Food and Water Bowls and Place mat, A towel for drying off after getting out of the Ocean, Dog Treats and much more. Plus dog biscuits come in the breakfast basket every morning so your best friend isn't forgotten. They even provide throws for the beds so your dog can cuddle and sleep with you .. and during the summer time they have an old cast Iron tub for washing all the sand off your dog after a day at the beach.
Just down the road a mile or so is a Dog beach ... where we took Sweet Flossie ..
This was her 1st time to the Ocean ....
I was a little concerned about how she would react to the roar of the Ocean and the water rushing up the shore.... She's always been a bit of a cautious pup
Well she hurried into the ocean and swam away
No not really....
I just loved her paw prints in the sand and had to get a picture of them.
Flossie had Such a Fun time at the beach .. she was a little cautious at first .. there was a small rock sticking out of the sand on the beach...and she went about 6 feet around it in all directions ..I would try to coax her to it ..but she would get within a foot of it and then quickly begin back peddling.We eventually conquered the fear of the rock after I covered it in dog treats and they were more important than her concern for what the rock might be or do ..LOL !
The above photo is of the ocean front 2 lane road that runs in front of the line of motels that all overlook the ocean...Each one has been beautifully renovated over the years and all are well kept. We were shocked at how many people were vacationing for Christmas in Cambria. We had this picture in our heads when we decided to go that we would be there all alone... but the opposite was true. Scads of people with their dogs walked the street, the boardwalk and played in the ocean. And the motel we stayed at was full every day. We met some wonderful people while staying and Flossie met some furry friends that she got to play and bark with as well.
This shot was from the Adirondack chairs on the knoll at our motel... all those rocks you see out there in the ocean.. each day they were covered with seals... You could walk the wooden boardwalk ( where you see the people standing) the complete mile length of the beach .. down to the lookout where the seals are. There are steps that lead down to the rocks where you can view the tide pools with sea urchins and starfish and other little sea creatures and you can view the seals up close and personal too.
And in January begins the whale watching season .. Now how fun would that be !
Well 5 days was fabulous but I sure think I could have gone for a whole month. I was just getting relaxed when it was time to come back home. However I came home with a renewed spirit... and that's a good thing. Being able to enjoy all God's beauty and peacefulness was just an absolute blessing as well as making more memories with my family !
It truly was a Merry Christmas I won't forget !
